// alternatives · October 2026
MiniMax M3.1 Flash alternatives
Cheaper models that come close, budget substitutes, and the cheapest step up — chosen on published LiveBench scores and live list price, never on our opinion. Every model here supports tool calling and image input, as MiniMax M3.1 Flash does.
The closest cheaper alternative to MiniMax M3.1 Flash is Claude Haiku 5.5 — 3.0 points higher overall, 24% cheaper on LiveBench and list price.
MiniMax M3.1 Flash: 66.9 overall on LiveBench, $0.262 per 1M blended tokens, about $102.00/mo for a RAG assistant.
Cheaper, close in quality
Lower list price and within 5 points of MiniMax M3.1 Flash on LiveBench overall — the switches least likely to be noticed by users. Strongest first.
| Model | Overall | vs MiniMax M3.1 Flash | Blended / 1M | RAG assistant | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 5.5anthropic 3.0 points higher overall, 24% cheaper. Head to head → | 69.8 | +3.0 | $0.200−24% | $74.00/mo | 1M |
| GPT-6 Lunaopenai 2.3 points lower overall, 24% cheaper. Head to head → | 64.6 | −2.3 | $0.200−24% | $74.00/mo | 1.1M |
| GLM 5.3 Flashz-ai 4.8 points lower overall, 10% cheaper. Head to head → | 62.1 | −4.8 | $0.237−10% | $102.00/mo | 1.0M |
Match it on one task for less
For each LiveBench category, the cheapest model that scores at least as well as MiniMax M3.1 Flash there. Useful when your workload is mostly one kind of task.
| Category | Cheapest match | Score | Blended / 1M |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long-horizon agentic | Claude Haiku 5.5 | 40.0 vs 28.8 | $0.200−24% |
| Coding | Claude Haiku 5.5 | 91.4 vs 83.9 | $0.200−24% |
| Data analysis | GPT-6 Luna | 73.4 vs 71.4 | $0.200−24% |
| Research | Claude Haiku 5.5 | 81.9 vs 72.7 | $0.200−24% |
| Documents & design | Claude Haiku 5.5 | 83.1 vs 74.0 | $0.200−24% |
Stronger options, cheapest first
Models that beat MiniMax M3.1 Flash on LiveBench overall, ordered by what the upgrade costs.
| Model | Overall | vs MiniMax M3.1 Flash | Blended / 1M | RAG assistant | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 5.5anthropic 3.0 points higher overall, 24% cheaper. Head to head → | 69.8 | +3.0 | $0.200−24% | $74.00/mo | 1M |
| DeepSeek V4.1 Flash 1017deepseek 7.1 points higher overall, 100% more expensive. Head to head → | 74.0 | +7.1 | $0.525 | $194.40/mo | 1.0M |
| MiMo-V2.6-Proxiaomi 1.6 points higher overall, 107% more expensive. Head to head → | 68.5 | +1.6 | $0.544 | $227.64/mo | 1.1M |
| GPT-6.1 Terraopenai 10.9 points higher overall, 662% more expensive. Head to head → | 77.8 | +10.9 | $2.00 | $720.00/mo | 1.1M |
| SpaceXAI: Grok 4.7x-ai 3.2 points higher overall, 1043% more expensive. Head to head → | 70.1 | +3.2 | $3.00 | $1,360/mo | 500K |
MiniMax M3.1 Flash alternatives FAQ
What is the best alternative to MiniMax M3.1 Flash?
Claude Haiku 5.5. 3.0 points higher overall, 24% cheaper. Every suggestion supports tool calling and image input, like MiniMax M3.1 Flash.
What is the cheapest alternative to MiniMax M3.1 Flash?
Claude Haiku 5.5 at $0.200 per 1M blended tokens, scoring 69.8 overall against MiniMax M3.1 Flash's 66.9. On a RAG assistant at 100K requests a month that is $74.00 instead of $102.00.
Which model is better than MiniMax M3.1 Flash?
The cheapest model that scores higher overall on LiveBench is Claude Haiku 5.5 — 3.0 points higher overall, 24% cheaper.
Is there a cheaper model that matches MiniMax M3.1 Flash on specific tasks?
Yes, in 5 of the seven LiveBench categories. For example, long-horizon agentic: Claude Haiku 5.5 (40.0 vs 28.8); coding: Claude Haiku 5.5 (91.4 vs 83.9); data analysis: GPT-6 Luna (73.4 vs 71.4).
How alternatives are chosen
- Scores — LiveBench release 2026-10-25. Only models with a published run are suggested on quality; a missing model means “not evaluated”, not “worse”.
- Prices — live list prices from OpenRouter, blended 3:1 input:output. Monthly figures price a RAG assistant with the published cached-input rate where there is one.
- Same job — suggestions must support every capability MiniMax M3.1 Flash has among tool calling and image input. Other listings of the same model (free or batch tiers) are variants, not alternatives, and are left out.
A few points on a public benchmark can hide large differences on your own tasks. Shortlist here, then decide with an eval — how to build one.